ACCREDITATION FACTS

In June, the NYS SBDC will receive a team of four reviewers who are charged with evaluating the effectiveness of the program serving the small businesses of New York State. No doubt, your center director has told you about the visit scheduled for June. This week you will learn some of the facts about the visit.

What: The ASBDC Accreditation Committee is paid by the US Small Business Administration to review each lead program (state or regional) to determine the capability of its leadership; the capability of the program to develop and implement services in response to customer needs; whether resources are allocated appropriately; and whether partnerships and alliances are effective. Reviews of the SBDCs are scheduled on a four year cycle. A Review Team, composed of SBDC state directors and associate state directors visits the Central Office and Regional Centers. A Self-Study Guide, prepared by the program, is submitted to the Review Team Leader at least 30 days prior to the visit, to explain how the SBDC performs required tasks. At the conclusion of the visit, there is an exit interview to present the preliminary conclusions of the Team to the state under review. A draft report is transmitted to the Director of the SBDC under review within 30 days of the exit interview. The State Director is encouraged to comment on the draft and his comments are considered when the Review Team finalizes its report.

When: June 11 to 15, 2007

Where: The Review Team will begin and end its visit to New York State at the Central Office. Team members will visit regional centers on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday with a few exceptions.

Who: The Team that will review our program will be led by Max Summers, the SBDC State Director from Missouri. Other members of the team are Warren Bush, Director of the Virgin Island SBDC, Hank Turner, Director of the Washington DC SBDC, and Barbara Necarsulmer, Associate State Director of the Delaware SBDC.

Why: Title 13 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Chapter 1, Part 130, Section 130.800 “Oversight of the SBDC program,” states that – “SBA shall monitor and oversee the Cooperative Agreement and ongoing operations of the SBDC network to ensure the effective and efficient use of Federal funds for the benefit of the small business community.” In the SBA Re-authorization and Amendment Act of 1994, the SBA is granted the authority to hire an outside organization to conduct reviews of the SBDC program. The SBA engaged the Association of Small Business Development Centers to conduct the reviews. The ASBDC Accreditation Committee is charged with carrying out the reviews and continually improving the accreditation process.

Each Small Business Development Center lead program (state or region) must present evidence that it has made the commitment necessary to meet the requirements of the approved ASBDC Certification Standards. If an SBDC is denied certification by the Accreditation Committee, the decision will immediately be relayed to the US Small Business Administration, which may decide to withdraw funding from the SBDC in question.

You can read the current Accreditation Standards and/or Self Study Guide, by clicking on the underlined words in this sentence.

MARKETING

North Country SBDC Director Dee Clark presented information about the services of the SBDC to the Noon Kiwanis club. The information was well received.

North Country SBDC Director Dee Clark recently met with Senator Little to talk about the services the SBDC provides. The Senator graciously offered to provide the SBDC with space to meet with clients at her Queensbury office and offered to include SBDC brochures in her next mailing to new businesses in her district.

The Mohawk Valley SBDC works with the Rome Industrial Development Corporation (RIDC) to facilitate the equitable distribution of loans along Erie Boulevard, within a half mile of a major construction site. The businesses are adversely affected by the prolonged traffic disruption connected with road construction at the intersection of Rt. 46 and Erie Blvd. In consideration of the effect on businesses, the RIDC sought funding and created a loan fund to assist the businesses in this area of Rome. The Job-Business Retention Loan Program is open to all businesses in the City of Rome and requires a business in the qualifying zone to be operable on or before April 1, 2002. The goal of the program is to retain jobs that might be lost due to lay offs which stem from decreased sales revenue. These loans are for working capital and non-fixed equipment uses.

TECHNOLOGY

The Mohawk Valley SBDC is a member of the Genesis Technology Committee. The committee is charged with assessing, assisting, and suggesting projects and programs to enhance, expand, and facilitate technology in the Mohawk Valley. Many of the members are owners or principals in small technology companies. There are currently more than six areas in which the Committee will develop projects or programs, and the Committee has an interest in promoting engineering in the local high schools. It is working to develop greater use of broad band and wireless communications throughout the region. The Committee continues to network with energy agencies to spread knowledge of technologies that reduce energy cost.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
& STAFF RETENTION

Stony Brook SBDC Business Advisor Bernie Ryba successfully completed the Intuit QuickBooks ProAdvisor Program. As a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor, Bernie and the Stony Brook SBDC are now listed in the Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor client referral database, which provides a link to the Stony Brook SBDC website. Bernie is a CPA and an active member of the American Institute of CPA's Information Technology Section.

North Country SBDC Business Advisor Tony Maglione invited a local commercial realtor to meet with the SBDC staff to inform them about space available in the new professional building in downtown Plattsburgh. Several clients are interested in the space and SBDC staff now has more information to share regarding this location.